Hi, I'm Tom Williams at AHW here in Monticello, Illinois.
I want to talk to you today about John Deere's new redesigned Z500 Series mowers.
The Z515E, Z530M, Z30R, and the fuel-injected Z545R.
I have the Z530R here behind me, let's take a closer look.
So let's start at the front of the mower with the decal.
The most common question I get from customers is "What's that last letter?"
With the Z500 Series, you are going to get an E, M or an R model. The E is the base model.
The M is the step up from the base model to the mid-trim series
and the R is the premium trim series. So just like shopping for a car or truck,
the higher the trim level, the more features you will get.
This lettering system can also be seen in other John Deere products
such as their Gators and compact tractors.
When it comes to the mower deck, John Deere offers 3 sizes:
the 48 inch, the 54 inch, and the 60 inch. When it comes to the E and M models,
you can get the 10 gauge Accel Deep stamped deck in all 3 sizes.
On the R models, you get the High Capacity 9 gauge stamped deck that
only comes in the 54 and 60 inch. And no matter the deck size,
it comes with the wash port to help you clean out the underside of the deck.
Moving along, we have the fuel fill, which as you notice is low to the ground and angled to
make it easier to put gas in the mower. Behind the fuel fill, we have the 2 cup
holders and a deck-leveling gauge as well as a tool to help you adjust the levers on the mower.
Moving down to the tires, the Z500 Series comes with two tire options.
The E and M models have the 22x9.5 tires. When you upgrade to the R model they have
the 23x10.5 tires. Having these bigger
tires will help reduce the bumps in your yard, to give you a better ride quality.
Also, with the R models, you get the fender flares.
The Z500 Series that three engines from two different manufactures.
The Z515E has a 24 HP Briggs and Stratton engine, while the Z530M and Z530R have the 24 HP Kawasaki.
The Z545R has the new fuel-injected Vanguard Briggs and Stratton engine.
This is the first time John Deere has ever put
a fuel-injected engine in a zero-turn residential mower.
There are a lot of benefits to this and one big one is getting rid of that choke.
One of the more valuable features of going with the R Series is the upgraded transmission.
It adds more durability and more speed for mowing.
Also, that comes on the R Series is the towable hitch here that comes as an option on the E and M.
One of the more noticeable features of the redesigned Z500 Series is the ROPS bar.
This new ROPS bar adds additional safety in case of a rollover.
They have also redesigned the pin system on these ROPS bars to make it easier
to fold the ROPS bar over to underneath those trees or to get into the garage faster.
Moving around to the side, we have the storage compartment here.
On the inside, we have the 12-volt power outlet.
The R Series also has the lid here to keep the elements out as you mow.
Moving up to the operator's station, we have the instrument panel.
All of the instrument panels are the same, except for the Z545R.
Since it is fuel-injected, you get rid of the throttle lever and the choke lever
and you move to a 3 button throttle. Low, Eco and High.
In front of the throttle, we have the PTO switch that engages the blades,
the key, and the light switch. The LED light package comes standard on
the R Series but can be added to the E and M. In front of the switches on the R Series,
we have the digital instrument cluster. On the left, we have the RPM gauge.
In the middle, we have the fuel gauge. On the far right, we have the hour meter
and above that, we have the battery voltage. Here at the top, we have the warning light
indicator to let you know if anything is going wrong.
The E and M models have a basic digital fuel gauge and hour meter.
In front of the digital instrument cluster,
we have the lever here to lock out the deck for transportation.
In front of that, we have the all new height of cut adjustment system
that allows you to set your deck anywhere from 1 inch to 4 inches with 1/4 inch increments.
Another added feature on the redesigned Z500 Series are the seats.
The E Series comes with the 18 inch back, the M Series comes with the 20 inch back
and the R series comes with the 22.5 inch back. Also another first on the Z500 Series is the
introduction of the ComfortGlide seat. Previously available on the Z700 and
Z900 mowers now comes on Z500s, available on the M and R Series.
On this ComfortGlide system, not only you get the up and down, you get the
forward and back motion as well, greatly increasing the overall ride of the mower.
The E Series come with the basic levers while the M and R come with the premium levers you see here.
Lastly, we will move to the platform. As you can see on the R Series, we have
the rubber floormat and the rubber toe board. On the M Series, it only comes with the rubber
floormat and on the E Series, it comes as just the metal platform.
The footpegs here come standard on the M and R Series and come as an option on the E.
These footpegs double as good handles to take the foot platform off
for easy access to the top of the deck. You will notice the large rubber isolators
here on the R Series to help reduce the vibrations in the foot platform.
On the E and M Series, we have a smaller rubber isolator that attaches here.
When it comes to warranty, the E and M Series has a 4 year, 300 hour,
whichever comes first, factory warranty. When you move up to the R Series,
the hours increase to 500 with the same 4 year warranty.
Again, I'm Tom with AHW. Thanks for hanging with me on this walkaround.
For more information on these mowers, go to AHWLLC.com.
And remember... AHW is Always Here When... there is work to be done.